


Thinking Too Slow

by onebizarrekai



Category: Dangan Ronpa - All Media Types, New Dangan Ronpa V3: Everyone's New Semester of Killing
Genre: Chapter 1 Spoilers, M/M, Short Story, big hateship energy, kokichi is back on his bullshit, no spoilers besides that, probably takes place mid-early game, this entire fic is self indulgent
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-21
Updated: 2020-04-21
Packaged: 2021-03-01 20:56:06
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,533
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23773456
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/onebizarrekai/pseuds/onebizarrekai
Summary: Kokichi ropes Shuichi into playing hide and seek with him.
Relationships: Oma Kokichi/Saihara Shuichi
Comments: 6
Kudos: 150





	Thinking Too Slow

**Author's Note:**

> I've been listening to how bad can I be like five times a day because of kokichi someone fucking save me
> 
> seriously just TRY to tell me that it's not basically his theme song

Shuichi could feel an existential crisis emerging from the crevices in his brain. He was minding his own business. His own goddamn business. Everything was cool. Actually, nothing was cool, but at least they were cooler than they were about forty seconds later.

The tiny trash man showed his face. Shuichi tried his best to avoid Kokichi, but Kokichi was everywhere at once. The bastard boy was unavoidable. You thought you were safe, but you thought wrong. There he would be standing, creeping towards whoever was unlucky enough to enter his vicinity like a prowling demon kitten. Shuichi needed to start doing the mental equivalent of weight lifting exclusively on behalf of this miniature politician’s bullshit.

Kokichi was making faces at him. Shuichi had tried to slink away, brush him off, and vanish into the darkness to get away from the personified dumpster fire, but the tiny turd refused him leverage. Once Kokichi noticed that Shuichi was trying to get away, he started his whiny shtick all over again, clearly trying to provoke either the smallest amount of guilt or the largest amount of exasperation. Kokichi wasn’t picky. He clearly had no preference for the kind of attention he had paid to him.

Shuichi, however, wasn’t fooled into either of those things. He was going to get away. He was going to run, and run some more, and hopefully succeed in avoiding Kokichi for at least the next ten minutes. Kokichi had other plans. He slammed his tiny, scrawny arm into the bathroom wall where he had cornered the Ultimate Detective.

“You’re not really going to leave me alone here, are you, Saihara?” Kokichi asked, his iconic ridiculous, mocking drawl soaking his tone as it tended to. “I just want someone to hang out with. And you, oh… _you_.”

Shuichi fidgeted. “Just… let me go, come on,” he said, running his fingernails together with certain nervousness.

“I wanna hang out with you because you’re _fun_ , Saihara,” Kokichi giggled, leaning his tiny body closer to Shuichi. “Come on, pleeeeeeaaaaaase.”

“… I hung out with you yesterday,” Shuichi told him. “Ouma, come on, just–”

Kokichi clicked his tongue. “Man. I guess I’ll just have to tell Gonta that you don’t like bugs,” he mused, removing his hand from the wall and checking his nails. Shuichi’s eye twitched.

“Ouma, I swear to god.”

Kokichi playfully stuck out his tongue, looking up at Shuichi with unequivocal evil in his eyes. “God can’t save you now, dear,” he said, smiling cheerily. “Now, what should we play?”

Shuichi looked concerned. “P…Play?” he stammered. “I… I take it you don’t want to just sit around and talk.”

“Of course not! Do I look like that kind of boring garbage amuses me?” Kokichi scoffed. “Come on, Saihara. Let’s get out of this dump.”

Before Shuichi could protest, Kokichi grabbed him by his wrist and pulled him out of the bathroom. Even as they entered the hallway, his grip didn’t relent. Kokichi marched victoriously, like he took some form of gratification in dragging Shuichi around like a trophy.

“Wait, where are we going?” Shuichi asked, stumbling slightly as the miniature demon hauled him down the overgrown school corridor. Kokichi produced some form of ambivalent noise.

“I dunno,” he answered. He suddenly stopped. “Ah. I have an idea.”

“Huh? What is it?” Shuichi asked hesitantly. A physical chill went down his spine as Kokichi turned around, already smiling nefariously again. He brought a curious finger to his lips, basking in his own morbid ingenuity. Kokichi enjoyed Shuichi’s blatant discomfort for a few moments in silence before he decided to pass the tension by.

“This school seems like a great place to play hide and seek, doesn’t it?” Kokichi asked.

Shuichi felt relief at the normal response for only a moment before he remembered that this was literally Kokichi he was talking to. Shuichi nervously brushed his own hair from his face.

“Great, uh,” he stammered, looking away. “I’ll count.”

The smile on Kokichi’s face grew wider. “Oh, no. _You’re_ hiding, Saihara dearest,” he corrected. Shuichi nearly choked on air. As if he didn’t play this game every day of his recent life already. The thought didn’t stop a pit of uncertainty from sinking into his stomach. Kokichi’s evil smile combined with the notion of hiding turned it from hide and seek to an undeniable horror video game. “Also, just to make it more fun, if I find you, you should run! If I get you… I win!” Kokichi grinned ear to ear, giggling.

Now it was definitely a horror game that Shuichi didn’t think he was ready to experience.

“… Ouma, I’m not very good at running,” Shuichi said quietly. Kokichi rolled his eyes.

“Oh, get over it,” he replied, waving his hand. “I’m a tiny supreme leader. Do I look like I’m going to be in shape either?” Kokichi put his hands behind his head, rocking on his heels. “Cool. You can hide anywhere in this building. I’ll give you like, three minutes.”

“Um… what if you don’t find me?” Shuichi asked nervously. “Should we set a time limit of some kind?”

Kokichi silently checked his nails for a second. “I dunno. I’m not worried about not finding you.” He glanced up at Shuichi, like he was plotting something again.

Shuichi remembered that he was playing hide and seek with the Ultimate Bastard and that Kokichi was very likely to win this at any cost, even if it meant his usual dirty tricks. “Wait, how am I supposed to win, then?” he asked.

Kokichi snickered. “You don’t, obviously.” Shuichi squinted.

“Ouma, as ridiculous as I already think this is, I’m definitely not interested in playing a game only you can win.”

Kokichi poked his face innocently. “But isn’t that just how it is sometimes, Saihara?” he asked. He pouted at Shuichi’s blank expression. “Okay, okay. Fine. You win if I don’t catch you in ninety minutes. Are you happy now? I’m gonna start counting. Get going. One, two…” He closed his eyes.

“W-wait, I’m–!” Shuichi started, flinching back a step.

“THREE,” Kokichi continued, his voice twice as loud as if in warning. Shuichi swore under his breath, stumbling over his feet as he ran down the hallway. Why was he playing this ridiculous game with Kokichi? Didn’t he have anything better to do?

Oh, wait. He actually didn’t. That aside, he felt an odd determination. Part of him wanted to win against Kokichi, just because he was Kokichi, and because Shuichi wanted to beat him at something, but he couldn’t help but wonder if Kokichi would just brush it off if he did.

What was the best place he could hide? Where would Kokichi not think to look, but also, should Shuichi be found, he would still have a chance to slip out and escape without being cornered? As he scoured his mind and ran down the hallway, he instinctively went through the factors. Would Kokichi expect him to hide in a traditional hiding place, maybe inside something, or was he expecting a thicket of plants? Alternatively, what if Shuichi didn’t hide at all, and instead tailed Kokichi, staying out of his sight so he could never find him?

Shuichi quickly dismissed the idea, not having nearly enough confidence in his capacity to be stealthy. Were there any accessible high places he could set himself, so Kokichi couldn’t reach him unless he climbed up, easily giving Shuichi time to escape? No places came to mind. Maybe he should’ve just focused on finding a good enough hiding spot that Kokichi just wouldn’t find him in the first place.

Shuichi found himself in the library. Maybe if he hid on top of the bookshelves, Kokichi wouldn’t see him if he came in here. He could build a really short wall, maybe lie down; Kokichi wouldn’t be able to spot him unless he physically climbed up, as Shuichi was doing right now. The ladder was gone to prevent anyone from climbing up again, but it was clearly for naught, seeing as how Shuichi could still climb straight up the bookcases like a madman. Kaede’s earlier pathway had been demolished to prevent someone else from killing with the same tactic.

Ah. Kaede.

Shuichi’s movements slowed as he prepared a convenient escape plan, climbed over past the vent and huddled up against the far wall. A wave of sadness and regret returned to him, relentlessly swallowing him. Before long, he was crying, and his concept of time disappeared. Absentmindedly, he stacked the books next to him to conceal himself and lay down, putting his arms over his face.

Coming down here was definitely a mistake. For Christ’s sake, Rantaro died in that corner over there–

“Hey, Saihara!” Shuichi jolted at a familiar voice hitting him much sooner than he expected, albeit he didn’t know how much time had passed. He jolted up in response to his name, seeing Kokichi. Oh, right… they were playing hide and seek.

“H…How did you find me?” Shuichi stammered, wiping his eyes as he looked down over the side of the shelf. Kokichi laughed out loud, like he wasn’t fully expecting a response.

“I followed the sound of your uncontrollable sobbing,” Kokichi replied. “Geez, Saihara. I don’t think this spot would have been half bad if you weren’t bawling so hard.”

“I wasn’t being that loud!”

“Your tender little heart pricked, Saihara? You need some emotional support?” Kokichi asked, a smile so innocent on his face it looked nefarious as he extended his arms straight out. “C’mere, I’ll give you a much deserved hug.”

“W-Wait,” Shuichi started, shifting back an inch. “You’ll win if I come down there.”

Kokichi pursed his lips, putting his hands on his hips and tapping his foot. “Oh, don’t make me come up there, Saihara!” he warned.

Words echoed in Shuichi’s mind. He wanted to say them. God, he wanted to say them. Every insecurity in his body tried to hold the words in his throat, but he finally told them to fuck off. “Come and get me,” he said. Oh, that felt good. Kokichi looked utterly delighted. He laughed.

“You say that like you have somewhere to go,” Kokichi said. He hoisted himself up one shelf, and another. Shuichi inched away. “What? Are you gonna try and climb down once I get up there? You’re wasting your time!”

“… Am I?” Shuichi asked quietly. Kokichi pulled himself up shelf by shelf, smirking with certain nefariousness as Shuichi backed away towards the vent again.

“Oh, definitely!” Kokichi replied. “You’re just going to corner yourself. I feel bad for you, _really_.” His hand hit the top of the bookshelf. He pulled himself on top of the books, crawling towards Shuichi like a feline getting ready to pounce, who was slowly backing away and feeling around behind him. Kokichi was approaching him faster than he was moving, but all movements were slow, careful not to disturb the stacks of books below them. “You think you can find the edge of the shelf before I get you?”

Shuichi grabbed something. “I don’t need to,” he said, holding up a rope in his hands. Kokichi blinked. Shuichi sucked in air through his teeth, hopping off the side of the shelf, holding the rope as tightly as he could with both his hands. The shelf shook, a couple of books falling down. Shuichi landed rather sloppily, but landed, and immediately backed away from the shelf.

“Oh, that’s cute. Real cute,” Kokichi told him, grabbing hold of the same rope, as it was still fastened and secure. “I didn’t realize you thought that far ahead, given time constraints.”

“If I had time to cry, I think it… may have taken you too long to get here anyway,” Shuichi told him, backing towards the door.

“Where’d you get the rope, anyway? Do you just carry that around?” Kokichi asked. He tightened his grip on it, thudding to the ground, knocking over more books than Shuichi did. “Doesn’t matter. You can’t outrun me.”

Shuichi immediately shut the door of the library, sprinting away and hoping there wasn’t going to be anyone to run into during this dramatic chase scene. He briefly looked over his shoulder to see Kokichi throwing the library door open. Shuichi bolted up the stairs as fast as he could and down the hall. He realized he was already getting out of breath, and wondered if there was somewhere he could hide so he didn’t have to run for the remainder of how much time had passed.

He had an idea. Shuichi looked back at Kokichi running towards him at alarming speeds. He was sure several people had been minding their own business in the background and seen whatever was happening right now and were very confused, but Shuichi didn’t have time to pay them mind. He ran to the door, pushing it open as fast as he could.

“Hey, hey!” Kokichi called. “Are you going outside in an indoor game, Saihara?”

“You only said I had to hide in here!” Shuichi called back, the door shutting behind him.

Kokichi shook his head, his mouth twitching. “What am I going to do with you?” He threw the door open, looking left and right for Shuichi, not seeing him anywhere. Kokichi bounced forward, spinning around and catching him pressed up against the wall of the school building, heaving breaths. He tensed as he saw Kokichi notice him. “Come on, you’re gonna have to do better than that.”

Shuichi’s breath hitched. He bounded off on one leg towards the lawn, Kokichi following suit.

“Not on _my_ watch!” Kokichi yelled after him. Shuichi felt his entire body skip a beat as his foot suddenly skidded on the grass while he tried to veer his direction. Kokichi bounded into him, not really expecting him to have tripped either. They slipped into the grass, sliding just an inch in a heap.

Shuichi took a moment to come to. He blinked his eyes open as Kokichi was pushing himself up, and Shuichi realized just a beat later that Kokichi was hovering directly above him, hands in the grass beside his head, only inches between their faces.

“… Why, hello,” Kokichi said, a smirk returning to his face. Shuichi did not know to feel, that was for sure. He was expecting the small boy to move, make fun of him, do _something_ –but there was nothing but the white noise of the distant garden, the curious look on Kokichi’s face, and the ever sinking realization in Shuichi’s mind that Kokichi could hold him down if he wanted to. The moments passed. Long, silent moments, before Kokichi interjected again. “You know, you could have pushed me off already if you wanted me to move, Saihara.”

Shuichi felt just a bit of heat rush to his face. He needed time to stop so he could consolidate his feelings, somewhat overwhelmed by the ever-pressing nature of his confusion. Did he want Kokichi to move? Why was that even a question?

“Well, while you’re busy trying to figure out your feelings for me, I caught you,” Kokichi continued. “I win! I told you I’d win.” He giggled, tilting his head slightly and leaning closer. Shuichi’s eyes went wider as Kokichi made the space smaller with so little hesitation. “I can’t believe how utterly speechless you are. You just really want me to stay here, don’t you?”

“Sh…shut up,” Shuichi barely mumbled. He thought like a detective. He usually went over every detail, analyzing every idea–but right now, it wasn’t doing him any good at all. The whole world around them was fading as his inexplicable interest built. As much as he thought, and thought, he couldn’t find it in himself to move a muscle of his body.

“I mean, I _did_ catch you…” Kokichi told him, his voice getting darker. He wasn’t just doing this ignorantly and Shuichi knew _he_ knew it. “You’re like my prisoner, Saihara. You’ve no choice but to turn yourself _right_ over to me.”

Okay, now Shuichi could feel his heart thumping in his chest. It took one glance at Kokichi’s lips to realize he was seriously considering this. What was _this_? Whatever it was. He didn’t want to think too deeply into it.

Kokichi, evidently, got bored of Shuichi’s frozen antics. He lowered himself further, and Shuichi felt everything slow down as Kokichi closed the inches between them and connected their lips. Finally and almost frantically, Shuichi’s arms shot up, gripping the fabric of Kokichi’s jacket and scarf in two handfuls and rigidly separating the kiss, yet barely breaking distance and not releasing him either.

“What, did you not like that?” Kokichi asked, furrowing his brow and frowning in disdain. “You’re sending me mixed messages, Saihara.”

“N-no, I–” Shuichi stammered. “I’m just… I’m just collecting my thoughts.”

“Everyone knows that. Be a dear and do it faster.”

Shuichi knew right off the bat that he wanted to kiss Kokichi again after that happened. Did he mentally want to accept that? That was the problem. He had incredibly mixed feelings about Kokichi and he was starting to wonder if it was some bizarre combination of utter exasperation, distrust and indescribable attraction.

To be frank, in the context of him supposedly being the Ultimate Detective, maybe this made sense. Kokichi was his infuriating TV rival. Or maybe he was more like the one who organizes all the mind game crimes that Shuichi has to keep professionally taking apart. Why was he thinking about this? Too much thinking. _Too much thinking._

Shuichi pulled Kokichi back down without a word, sloppily connecting their lips again. Kokichi reacted quickly, pressing him into the grass and fixing the messy onset of the kiss. Shuichi found his fingers tangling in the other’s hair while another hand found its way to his back while Kokichi shifted down to his forearms.

He was making out with an insufferable, petulant bastard who literally lied to people for fun. Why was he doing this. _Why_. Shuichi already tried to find those answers and none came, and he was starting to realize there was a chance that he wasn’t going to find any answers, at least not now.

Kokichi drifted away just an inch. He was scanning over Shuichi’s face and neck with much less reservation now, lifting a hand to brush Shuichi’s hair from his face. He smiled, and Shuichi felt his breath hitch again. “You want to grass stain your clothes and put on a show for a while longer or perhaps move somewhere?” he asked.

It took a moment for Shuichi to process his words, and then he realized they’d been outside where anyone could see them this whole time. Oh, god. Anyone could have seen them and he wouldn’t even know. Kokichi snickered at the fear that sank into Shuichi’s gaze. “M…moving sounds like a good idea,” Shuichi said. Kokichi’s smirk grew as he leaned down to Shuichi’s ear.

“My room is open, dear.” Blood rushed to Shuichi’s head as he immediately grasped the possible implication. Kokichi was grinning ear to ear when he saw how red Shuichi’s face was becoming. He giggled. “I’m just kidding. Maybe. Holding you down on my bed sounds kinda fun.”

Shuichi could feel his face boiling. What had he gotten himself into?

“Come on, you can’t deny that you’re _curious_ , can you?” Kokichi asked him. “I felt how half-assed that kiss started out. You’ve got zero experience whatsoever. I’m sure your only hope is for me to help you. Pity…”

“Okay, okay, one thing at a _time_ ,” Shuichi finally sputtered. “Let me think about one thing at a time. I just…”

“Just?”

“I just… want to keep it simple for a little while. Like… this? But… somewhere else…” Shuichi wasn’t quite sure of his own words as they left his mouth. He was expecting Kokichi to look at him like he was nuts because what he said made absolutely no sense.

“Oh, so you just wanna make out some more,” Kokichi said, smile never falling. “You’re cute, Saihara.” He booped him on the nose.

Shuichi was dying inside.

“I still might have to take you to my room, though… I mean, it’s certainly more logical than the lawn, now isn’t it?” Kokichi asked. “Unless, of course, you’d feel _safer_ in your room.”

A weird part of his mind wanted to be in Kokichi’s room. Maybe it was a peculiar thrill factor. Did he even trust Kokichi as a person? Shuichi was wondering if he had bizarre interests this whole time. “… It doesn’t matter to me,” he said. 

Kokichi let out his signature laugh, leaning down and slowly pressing his lips to Shuichi’s forehead. “Then you can just follow me.” He sat up, slowly rising to his feet and making sure his fingers were interlaced with Shuichi’s as it happened. Shuichi followed him up, and the look on Kokichi’s face remained positively pleased as his fingers tightened around Shuichi’s hand. There was something about the way Kokichi was looking at him that shot a definite chill down his spine as the other boy playfully pulled him along.

Was he making a horrible mistake?

It couldn’t have been that bad, right?


End file.
